At 102 years of age, a dodgy hip and respiratory problems might be considered par for the course. But for Albina Cruces, the repercussions of her ailments have been far-reaching, finally bringing to an end her 87 years as a schoolteacher. The oldest school teacher in Mexico, and perhaps the world, has taken voluntary retirement. Ms Cruces began what she sees as her life's mission in state education shortly after the Mexican revolution ended in 1917. She taught throughout the seven-decade rule of the Institutional Revolutionary party and ends her career as Mexico's first democratically elected government since that time draws to a close. She claims to have easily adapted to each new era, never considering retirement even when union representatives suggested it was time. "I would just say no," said Ms Cruces, whose voice is soft, her tone firm and her finger ever ready to wag with gentle but inflexible conviction. "The children need me and I need the children." ... http://www.guardian.co.uk

GAZA, Palestine, December 20, 2005 (IPC)--The number of Palesinians killed since the outbreak of Al-Aqsa Intifadah (Uprising) on September 29, 2001 until November 30, 2005 has reached 4,214 in addition to 82 people who were not recorded because of Israeli interference, whereas the number of Palestinians wounded has reached 45,891.A report issued by the Palestinian National Information Center (PNIC) which belongs to the State Information Service (S.I.S), mentioned that the number of Palestinian children killed who are underage the age of 18 has reached to 791. The number of Palestinians killed by Israeli air-bombing has reached 732; 270 of which were female and 344 members of the Palestinian national security. ...http://www.aljazeerah.info/News%20archives/2005%20News%20Archives/December/21n/PNIC%204,214%20Palestinians%20Killed,%2045,891%20Wounded,%20and%209,200%20arrested%20Since%20the%20Beginning%20of%20AlAqsa%20Intifadah.htm

The European commission today threatened to impose daily fines of €2m (£1.3m) on Microsoft unless the software giant complied fully with a landmark anti-trust decision.In an escalation of a longstanding dispute, the commission said Microsoft would have to pay the fines - backdated to December 15 - unless it met conditions laid out in last year's ruling.The former EU competition commissioner, Mario Monti, fined the group founded by Bill Gates 30 years ago a record €497m in March 2004 for abusing its monopoly position. His successor, Neelie Kroes, is now investigating further complaints about the group's activities."I have given Microsoft every opportunity to comply with its obligations," Ms Kroes said in a statement. "However, I have been left with no alternative other than to proceed via the formal route to ensure Microsoft's compliance." ...http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,16781,1672922,00.html

US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld has arrived in Baghdad on an unannounced visit. Mr Rumsfeld, who was met by the US commander in Iraq, Gen George Casey, is to visit US troops in the country. He arrived from Afghanistan, where he ruled out any rapid pullout of US forces from the country. Mr Rumsfeld's trip to Iraq came as British Prime Minister Tony Blair paid tribute to UK troops after flying into southern Iraq on a surprise visit. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4553030.stm

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ordered Turkey on Thursday to put in place within three months an effective reparations mechanism for Greek Cypriots who were stripped of their possessions in the 1970s.The landmark order followed a ruling by the court in April that property courts in the Turkish-controlled north of the island were invalid as they offered only financial compensation for property lost when the island was divided in 1974. The court said Thursday's ruling applied both to the case of the Greek Cypriot who had lodged the complaint and to some 1,400 similar cases which are pending....http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1432685

UN secretary general Kofi Annan has launched an extraordinary outburst against the Times' New York correspondent, James Bone, branding him an "overgrown schoolboy".Mr Annan rounded on Bone during an end-of-year press conference, after the Times man questioned him on reports about his son, Kojo."I think you're being very cheeky. Listen James Bone, you've been behaving like an overgrown schoolboy in this room for many, many months and years," the UN secretary general said. "You are an embarrassment to your colleagues and to your profession. Please stop misbehaving and please let's move on to a serious subject," he added.The UN head's outburst followed a series of questions over his part in the Iraq oil-for-food scandal....http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,14173,1672860,00.html